201
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Ortiz-Zapater E, Pineda D, Martínez-Bosch N, Fernández-Miranda G, Iglesias M, Alameda F, Moreno M, Eliscovich C, Eyras E, Real FX, Méndez R, Navarro P. Key contribution of CPEB4-mediated translational control to cancer progression. Nat Med 2011; 18:83-90. [PMID: 22138752 DOI: 10.1038/nm.2540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 124] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2011] [Accepted: 09/28/2011] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Malignant transformation, invasion and angiogenesis rely on the coordinated reprogramming of gene expression in the cells from which the tumor originated. Although deregulated gene expression has been extensively studied at genomic and epigenetic scales, the contribution of the regulation of mRNA-specific translation to this reprogramming is not well understood. Here we show that cytoplasmic polyadenylation element binding protein 4 (CPEB4), an RNA binding protein that mediates meiotic mRNA cytoplasmic polyadenylation and translation, is overexpressed in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas and glioblastomas, where it supports tumor growth, vascularization and invasion. We also show that, in pancreatic tumors, the pro-oncogenic functions of CPEB4 originate in the translational activation of mRNAs that are silenced in normal tissue, including the mRNA of tissue plasminogen activator, a key contributor to pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma malignancy. Taken together, our results document a key role for post-transcriptional gene regulation in tumor development and describe a detailed mechanism for gene expression reprogramming underlying malignant tumor progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena Ortiz-Zapater
- Cancer Research Programme, Hospital del Mar Research Institute (IMIM), Barcelona, Spain
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202
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Abstract
"Germ granules" are cytoplasmic, nonmembrane-bound organelles unique to germline. Germ granules share components with the P bodies and stress granules of somatic cells, but also contain proteins and RNAs uniquely required for germ cell development. In this review, we focus on recent advances in our understanding of germ granule assembly, dynamics, and function. One hypothesis is that germ granules operate as hubs for the posttranscriptional control of gene expression, a function at the core of the germ cell differentiation program.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ekaterina Voronina
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Center for Cell Dynamics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
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203
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Abstract
The relevance of the non-coding genome to human disease has mainly been studied in the context of the widespread disruption of microRNA (miRNA) expression and function that is seen in human cancer. However, we are only beginning to understand the nature and extent of the involvement of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) in disease. Other ncRNAs, such as PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs), small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs), transcribed ultraconserved regions (T-UCRs) and large intergenic non-coding RNAs (lincRNAs) are emerging as key elements of cellular homeostasis. Along with microRNAs, dysregulation of these ncRNAs is being found to have relevance not only to tumorigenesis, but also to neurological, cardiovascular, developmental and other diseases. There is great interest in therapeutic strategies to counteract these perturbations of ncRNAs.
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204
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Zhang Y, Moriguchi H. Chromatin remodeling system, cancer stem-like attractors, and cellular reprogramming. Cell Mol Life Sci 2011; 68:3557-71. [PMID: 21909785 PMCID: PMC11115163 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-011-0808-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2011] [Revised: 08/01/2011] [Accepted: 08/22/2011] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
The cancer cell attractors theory provides a next-generation understanding of carcinogenesis and natural explanation of punctuated clonal expansions of tumor progression. The impressive notion of atavism of cancer is now updated but more evidence is awaited. Besides, the mechanisms that the ectopic expression of some germline genes result in somatic tumors such as melanoma and brain tumors are emerging but are not well understood. Cancer could be triggered by cells undergoing abnormal cell attractor transitions, and may be reversible with "cyto-education". From mammals to model organisms like Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila melanogaster, the versatile Mi-2β/nucleosome remodeling and histone deacetylation complexes along with their functionally related chromatin remodeling complexes (CRCs), i.e., the dREAM/Myb-MuvB complex and Polycomb group complex are likely master regulators of cell attractors. The trajectory that benign cells switch to cancerous could be the reverse of navigation of embryonic cells converging from a series of intermediate transcriptional states to a final adult state, which is supported by gene expression dynamics inspector assays and some cross-species genetic evidence. The involvement of CRCs in locking cancer attractors may help find the recipes of perturbing genes to achieve successful reprogramming such that the reprogrammed cancer cell function in the same way as the normal cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yue Zhang
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, 99 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215 USA
| | - Hisashi Moriguchi
- Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- Gastrointestinal Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA
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205
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Rudrapatna VA, Cagan RL, Das TK. Drosophila cancer models. Dev Dyn 2011; 241:107-18. [PMID: 22038952 DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.22771] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/27/2011] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Cancer is driven by complex genetic and cellular mechanisms. Recently, the Drosophila community has become increasingly interested in exploring cancer issues. The Drosophila field has made seminal contributions to many of the mechanisms that are fundamental to the cancer process; several of these mechanisms have already been validated in vertebrates. Less well known are the Drosophila field's early direct contributions to the cancer field: some of the earliest tumor suppressors were identified in flies. In this review, we identify major contributions that Drosophila studies have made toward dissecting the pathways and mechanisms underlying tumor progression. We also highlight areas, such as drug discovery, where we expect Drosophila studies to make a major scientific impact in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vivek A Rudrapatna
- Department of Developmental and Regenerative Biology, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York 10029, USA
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206
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Miles WO, Dyson NJ, Walker JA. Modeling tumor invasion and metastasis in Drosophila. Dis Model Mech 2011; 4:753-61. [PMID: 21979943 PMCID: PMC3209645 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.006908] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Conservation of major signaling pathways between humans and flies has made Drosophila a useful model organism for cancer research. Our understanding of the mechanisms regulating cell growth, differentiation and development has been considerably advanced by studies in Drosophila. Several recent high profile studies have examined the processes constraining the metastatic growth of tumor cells in fruit fly models. Cell invasion can be studied in the context of an in vivo setting in flies, enabling the genetic requirements of the microenvironment of tumor cells undergoing metastasis to be analyzed. This Perspective discusses the strengths and limitations of Drosophila models of cancer invasion and the unique tools that have enabled these studies. It also highlights several recent reports that together make a strong case for Drosophila as a system with the potential for both testing novel concepts in tumor progression and cell invasion, and for uncovering players in metastasis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wayne O Miles
- Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Cancer Research and Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
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207
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Juliano C, Wang J, Lin H. Uniting germline and stem cells: the function of Piwi proteins and the piRNA pathway in diverse organisms. Annu Rev Genet 2011; 45:447-69. [PMID: 21942366 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-genet-110410-132541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 279] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
The topipotency of the germline is the full manifestation of the pluri- and multipotency of embryonic and adult stem cells, thus the germline and stem cells must share common mechanisms that guarantee their multipotentials in development. One of the few such known shared mechanisms is represented by Piwi proteins, which constitute one of the two subfamilies of the Argonaute protein family. Piwi proteins bind to Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) that are generally 26 to 31 nucleotides in length. Both Piwi proteins and piRNAs are most abundantly expressed in the germline. Moreover, Piwi proteins are expressed broadly in certain types of somatic stem/progenitor cells and other somatic cells across animal phylogeny. Recent studies indicate that the Piwi-piRNA pathway mediates epigenetic programming and posttranscriptional regulation, which may be responsible for its function in germline specification, gametogenesis, stem cell maintenance, transposon silencing, and genome integrity in diverse organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Celina Juliano
- Yale Stem Cell Center and Department of Cell Biology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06509, USA.
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208
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Richter C, Oktaba K, Steinmann J, Müller J, Knoblich JA. The tumour suppressor L(3)mbt inhibits neuroepithelial proliferation and acts on insulator elements. Nat Cell Biol 2011; 13:1029-39. [PMID: 21857667 PMCID: PMC3173870 DOI: 10.1038/ncb2306] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2010] [Accepted: 06/24/2011] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
In Drosophila, defects in asymmetric cell division often result in the formation of stem-cell-derived tumours. Here, we show that very similar terminal brain tumour phenotypes arise through a fundamentally different mechanism. We demonstrate that brain tumours in l(3)mbt mutants originate from overproliferation of neuroepithelial cells in the optic lobes caused by derepression of target genes in the Salvador-Warts-Hippo (SWH) pathway. We use ChIP-sequencing to identify L(3)mbt binding sites and show that L(3)mbt binds to chromatin insulator elements. Mutating l(3)mbt or inhibiting expression of the insulator protein gene mod(mdg4) results in upregulation of SWH pathway reporters. As l(3)mbt tumours are rescued by mutations in bantam or yorkie or by overexpression of Expanded, the deregulation of SWH pathway target genes is an essential step in brain tumour formation. Therefore, very different primary defects result in the formation of brain tumours, which behave quite similarly in their advanced stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Constance Richter
- Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Science, Dr. Bohr-Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
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209
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Physical activity and breast cancer survival: an epigenetic link through reduced methylation of a tumor suppressor gene L3MBTL1. Breast Cancer Res Treat 2011; 133:127-35. [DOI: 10.1007/s10549-011-1716-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2011] [Accepted: 08/01/2011] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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210
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Yajima M, Wessel GM. The multiple hats of Vasa: its functions in the germline and in cell cycle progression. Mol Reprod Dev 2011; 78:861-7. [PMID: 21823188 DOI: 10.1002/mrd.21363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2011] [Accepted: 07/04/2011] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Vasa, an ATP-dependent RNA helicase, is broadly conserved among various organisms from cnidarians to mammals. It has a rich history of utility as a germline marker, and is believed to function as a positive translational regulator in the determination and maintenance of germline cells. Studies in non-model organisms, however, revealed that Vasa is also present in somatic cells of many tissues. In many cases these cells are multipotent, are non-germline associated, and give rise to a variety of different tissue types. Recent work now also demonstrates that Vasa functions in the regulation of the cell cycle. Here, we discuss this newly described function of Vasa in mitotic and meiotic cell cycles, and we address the conundrum created within these observations, that is, that most cells are mitotically independent of Vasa, yet when Vasa is present in a cell, it appears to be essential for cell cycle progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mamiko Yajima
- Department of Molecular Biology, Cellular Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
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211
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Petrella LN, Wang W, Spike CA, Rechtsteiner A, Reinke V, Strome S. synMuv B proteins antagonize germline fate in the intestine and ensure C. elegans survival. Development 2011; 138:1069-79. [PMID: 21343362 DOI: 10.1242/dev.059501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Previous studies demonstrated that a subset of synMuv B mutants ectopically misexpress germline-specific P-granule proteins in their somatic cells, suggesting a failure to properly orchestrate a soma/germline fate decision. Surprisingly, this fate confusion does not affect viability at low to ambient temperatures. Here, we show that, when grown at high temperature, a majority of synMuv B mutants irreversibly arrest at the L1 stage. High temperature arrest (HTA) is accompanied by upregulation of many genes characteristic of germ line, including genes encoding components of the synaptonemal complex and other meiosis proteins. HTA is suppressed by loss of global regulators of germline chromatin, including MES-4, MRG-1, ISW-1 and the MES-2/3/6 complex, revealing that arrest is caused by somatic cells possessing a germline-like chromatin state. Germline genes are preferentially misregulated in the intestine, and necessity and sufficiency tests demonstrate that the intestine is the tissue responsible for HTA. We propose that synMuv B mutants fail to erase or antagonize an inherited germline chromatin state in somatic cells during embryonic and early larval development. As a consequence, somatic cells gain a germline program of gene expression in addition to their somatic program, leading to a mixed fate. Somatic expression of germline genes is enhanced at elevated temperature, leading to developmentally compromised somatic cells and arrest of newly hatched larvae.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa N Petrella
- Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
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212
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Neural Stem Cell Biology in Vertebrates and Invertebrates: More Alike than Different? Neuron 2011; 70:719-29. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2011.05.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 89] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/12/2011] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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213
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Yajima M, Wessel GM. The DEAD-box RNA helicase Vasa functions in embryonic mitotic progression in the sea urchin. Development 2011; 138:2217-22. [PMID: 21525076 DOI: 10.1242/dev.065052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Vasa is a broadly conserved ATP-dependent RNA helicase that functions in the germ line of organisms from cnidarians to mammals. Curiously, Vasa is also present in the somatic cells of many animals and functions as a regulator of multipotent cells. Here, we report a mitotic function of Vasa revealed in the sea urchin embryo. We found that Vasa protein is present in all blastomeres of the early embryo and that its abundance oscillates with the cell cycle. Vasa associates with the spindle and the separating sister chromatids at metaphase, and then quickly disappears after telophase. Inhibition of Vasa protein synthesis interferes with proper chromosome segregation, arrests cells at M-phase, and delays overall cell cycle progression. Cdk activity is necessary for the proper localization of Vasa, implying that Vasa is involved in the cyclin-dependent cell cycle network, and Vasa is required for the efficient translation of cyclinB mRNA. Our results suggest an evolutionarily conserved role of Vasa that is independent of its function in germ line determination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mamiko Yajima
- Department of Molecular Biology, Cellular Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, 185 Meeting Street, BOX-GL173, Providence, RI 02912, USA.
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214
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Wang J, Emadali A, Le Bescont A, Callanan M, Rousseaux S, Khochbin S. Induced malignant genome reprogramming in somatic cells by testis-specific factors. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-GENE REGULATORY MECHANISMS 2011; 1809:221-5. [PMID: 21530697 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbagrm.2011.04.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2011] [Revised: 04/04/2011] [Accepted: 04/06/2011] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Germline cell differentiation is controlled by a specific set of genes whose expression is tightly locked into the repressed state in somatic cells. Large-scale epigenome alterations, now evidenced in nearly all cancers, lead to aberrant activation of these normally silenced genes, as attested by the many reports describing the expression of testis-specific factors, known as cancer-testis genes, in various cancer cells. Here, based on the literature, we argue that off-context activity of some of the testis-specific epigenome regulators can reprogram the somatic cell epigenome toward a malignant state by favoring self-renewal and sustaining cell proliferation under stressful conditions, thereby constituting a major oncogenic mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jin Wang
- INSERM, U823, Université Joseph Fourier - Grenoble 1, Institut Albert Bonniot, Grenoble, F-38706, France
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215
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Scatena R, Bottoni P, Pontoglio A, Giardina B. Cancer stem cells: the development of new cancer therapeutics. Expert Opin Biol Ther 2011; 11:875-92. [PMID: 21463158 DOI: 10.1517/14712598.2011.573780] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Cancer stem cells (CSCs) are a subpopulation of tumor cells with indefinite proliferative potential that drive the growth of tumors. CSCs seem to provide a suitable explanation for several intriguing aspects of cancer pathophysiology. AREAS COVERED An explosion of therapeutic options for cancer treatment that selectively target CSCs has been recorded in the recent years. These include the targeting of cell-surface proteins, various activated signalling pathways, different molecules of the stem cell niche and various drug resistance mechanisms. Importantly, approaching cancer research by investigating the pathogenesis of these intriguing cancer cells is increasing the knowledge of the pathophysiology of the disease, emphasizing certain molecular mechanisms that have been partially neglected. EXPERT OPINION The characterization of the molecular phenotype of these cancer stem-like cells, associated with an accurate definition of their typical derangement in cell differentiation, can represent a fundamental advance in terms of diagnosis and therapy of cancer. Preliminary results seem to be promising but further studies are required to define the therapeutic index of this new anticancer treatment. Moreover, understanding the pathogenetic mechanisms of CSCs can expand the therapeutic applications of normal adult stem cells by reducing the risk of uncontrolled tumorigenic stem cell differentiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberto Scatena
- Catholic University, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Largo A. Gemelli 8, 00168 Rome, Italy.
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216
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Pek JW, Kai T. Non-coding RNAs enter mitosis: functions, conservation and implications. Cell Div 2011; 6:6. [PMID: 21356070 PMCID: PMC3055801 DOI: 10.1186/1747-1028-6-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2011] [Accepted: 02/28/2011] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Nuage (or commonly known as chromatoid body in mammals) is a conserved germline-specific organelle that has been linked to the Piwi-interacting RNA (piRNA) pathway. piRNAs are a class of gonadal-specific RNAs that are ~23-29 nucleotides in length and protect genome stability by repressing the expression of deleterious retrotransposons. More recent studies in Drosophila have implicated the piRNA pathway in other functions including canalization of embryonic development, regulation of maternal gene expression and telomere protection. We have recently shown that Vasa (known as Mouse Vasa Homolog in mouse), a nuage component, plays a mitotic role in promoting chromosome condensation and segregation by facilitating robust chromosomal localization of condensin I in the Drosophila germline. Vasa functions together with Aubergine (a PIWI family protein) and Spindle-E/mouse TDRD-9, two other nuage components that are involved in the piRNA pathway, therefore providing a link between the piRNA pathway and mitotic chromosome condensation. Here, we propose and discuss possible models for the role of Vasa and the piRNA pathway during mitosis. We also highlight relevant studies implicating mitotic roles for RNAs and/or nuage in other model systems and their implications for cancer development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun Wei Pek
- Department of Biological Sciences and Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, 1 Research Link, The National University of Singapore, 117604, Singapore.
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217
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyun Wu
- Department of Molecular Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA.
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